WWE’s creative team has undergone a minimal shakeup as the blue brand prepares for an expanded schedule in the new year. Paul Levesque continues to drive the show as the primary decision-maker for all televised content.
While Bruce Prichard and Ed Koskey weigh in on creative, they also handle the company-wide distribution of information. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Ryan Ward is currently in charge of handling all creative pitches to Levesque and has been picking up a lot of the slack on SmackDown recently.
The reported restructure follows issues with SmackDown creative that are noted to be improved. This minor adjustment included a little push-up for Ryan Ward, while co-head writers John Swikata and Bryan Road Dogg James received a little push-down. Jonathan Baeckstrom and Alexandra Williams remain the co-lead writers for Raw, with William Regal and Michael Hayes also involved in the process.
Meltzer wrote, “This is the current breakdown of creative. Paul Levesque drives the show. Bruce Prichard and Ed Koskey weigh in on creative but they also handle the company-wide distribution of information. Ryan Ward is in charge of handling all the creative pitches to Levesque. Jonathan Baeckstrom and Alexandra Williams are the co-lead writers for Raw. John Swikata and Brian James (Road Dogg) are the co-lead writers of Smackdown. Ward has been picking up a lot of the slack on Smackdown. William Regal and Michael Hayes are also involved. Nothing has really changed in the last few months on this except there were issues with Smackdown creative that have been said to now be improved, but it was said to be a minimal shakeup, basically a little push up for Ward and a little push down for Swikata and James.”
This creative shift aligns with a major change to the show’s runtime on the USA Network. WWE SmackDown officially moved back to a three-hour format beginning with the January 2, 2026, episode from the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. This move mirrors the pattern established in 2025, when the show also ran as a three-hour program for the first half of the year.
Current plans suggest that SmackDown will run as a three-hour show for approximately half of the year.
